The search for new therapeutic agents has been greatly aided in recent years by a better understanding of the structure of enzymes and other biomolecules associated with diseases. One important class of enzymes that has been the subject of extensive study is protein kinases.
Protein kinases constitute a large family of structurally related enzymes that are responsible for the control of a variety of signal transduction processes within the cell. Protein kinases are thought to have evolved from a common ancestral gene due to the conservation of their structure and catalytic function. Almost all kinases contain a similar 250-300 amino acid catalytic domain. The kinases may be categorized into families by the substrates they phosphorylate (e.g., protein-tyrosine, protein-serine/threonine, lipids, etc.).
In general, protein kinases mediate intracellular signaling by effecting a phosphoryl transfer from a nucleoside triphosphate to a protein acceptor that is involved in a signaling pathway. These phosphorylation events act as molecular on/off switches that can modulate or regulate the target protein biological function. These phosphorylation events are ultimately triggered in response to a variety of extracellular and other stimuli. Examples of such stimuli include environmental and chemical stress signals (e.g., osmotic shock, heat shock, ultraviolet radiation, bacterial endotoxin, and H2O2), cytokines (e.g., interleukin-1 (IL-1) and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α)), and growth factors (e.g., granulocyte macrophage-colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), and fibroblast growth factor (FGF)). An extracellular stimulus may affect one or more cellular responses related to cell growth, migration, differentiation, secretion of hormones, activation of transcription factors, muscle contraction, glucose metabolism, control of protein synthesis, and regulation of the cell cycle.
Many diseases are associated with abnormal cellular responses triggered by protein kinase-mediated events as described above. These diseases include, but are not limited to, autoimmune diseases, inflammatory diseases, bone diseases, metabolic diseases, neurological and neurodegenerative diseases, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, allergies and asthma, Alzheimer's disease, and hormone-related diseases.
The mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) protein kinase is a master growth regulator that senses diverse environmental cues, such as growth factors, cellular stresses, and nutrient and energy levels. When activated, mTORC1 phosphorylates substrates that potentiate anabolic processes, such as mRNA translation and lipid synthesis, and limits catabolic ones, such as autophagy. mTORC1 dysregulation occurs in a broad spectrum of diseases, including diabetes, epilepsy, neurodegeneration, immune response, suppressed skeletal muscle growth, and cancer among others (Howell et al., (2013) Biochemical Society transactions 41, 906-912; Kim et al., (2013) Molecules and cells 35, 463-473; Laplante and Sabatini, (2012) Cell 149, 274-293). Accordingly, there remains a need to find protein kinase inhibitors useful as therapeutic agents.